My first website was written in HTML4, so I got to use all sorts of fun code like <code>&lt;center&gt;</code>. Don't worry, I've kicked those bad habits since then!

After years of building static sites, I finally got around to adding some functionality. JavaScript was a big step up from HTML and CSS alone, and it took me awhile to get it.

After almost 7 years of part-time, on-and-off practice in web development, I decided to put myself out there and look for paid work. I wanted a W2 position, but I was willing to freelance in the meantime while I looked for stable work. My first project was an HTML/CSS-only redesign of a real estate brokerage website.

I didn't want to be a master of one trade (or language) - I wanted to know as much as possible. I had previously learned object-oriented PHP and taken a brief foray into Java, so I decided to learn a modern programming language with a lot of enterprise use.

PHP was great, and it was powerful, but I wanted more. More power, more flexibility, more consistency. C# offered all of these, so I decided to move my backend ambitions to Microsoft's popular cross-platform offering.

Finally! After breaking down and working with a recruiter, I quickly landed a full-time position as a software engineer for a locum tenens agency. My years there have been spent writing ASP.NET Core websites with both VueJS and MVC/Razor frontends, writing desktop and cloud software to make recruiting more efficient, and managing other aspects of their IT needs as well, including deployment, server management, database management, and more.